Sculptor Lawrence Williams has been named the recipient of the Lillian Fairchild Award administered by the University of Rochester.
The annual award is presented to a Rochester area resident who has produced the best visual, literary, or musical work of art. Williams was cited for his sculpture titled "Sledges and Piers: Water and Ice."
Known for his expansive installations, Williams creates sculpture and drawings from found objects. "Sledges and Piers" is constructed of old wood and other objects. His work has been displayed in several group exhibitions in Rochester and New York City and can be found in the permanent collections of the Memorial Art Gallery, the Everson Museum of Art in Syracuse, the Allan Stone Gallery in New York City, the Museum of Nebraska Art, and other galleries.
Williams holds a bachelor of fine arts degree from the Kansas City Art Institute and a master of fine arts degree from the University of Illinois. He was professor of art at Rochester Institute of Technology before retiring in 1996.
The Fairchild Award was established by Herman L. Fairchild of the University's Department of Geology in memory of his daughter, an accomplished designer who died of tuberculosis at age 32. The first award was given in 1924. Previous winners have included Garth Fagan, director of Garth Fagan Dance, architect Frank S. Grosso, and novelist Andrea Barrett.